Beyond Betrayal
by TurtleFriedRice
Summary: A random AU prompted one shot from tumblr, the au being 'zosan superheros'.


Fuck them. Fuck who ever thought it'd be a good idea to tell the world that when things were bad and spiraling down and death was moments away, that everything slowed. Because it really wasn't anything descriptive let alone slow. It had all happened to fast.

Their final brawl was up on top of the west side bridge, and despite the constant news chopper's circling ahead with their beam lights and the hundreds of cars, now abandoned below the rafters, they were completely alone. Of course, Sanji could only barely hear the words spoken to him above the buzzing sounds of a city in utter panic. He was being held off the side before an excessively long drop and much like the rest of the inhuman abilities he was famously known for, the fire around his leg was ultimately burning out.

His eyes, a much livelier shade of blue that favored the water below on a nice crisp day, stared up at his opponent in shameful silence, the weight of his body betraying him, still he was amazed at the same time her strength.

Although he might've been able to before this had happened, he wasn't sure how she was able to hold herself up so effortlessly on metal framing in high heels, whilst also holding him up just by his collar. Under her breath, which was still an eerie calm at this ordeal, she purred out an amused chuckle.

"You tried hard Sanji-san, you were so brave trying to fight me." Chills ran down his spine at the use of his real name, and not the one the world came to know him by. "At least in the end they'll know you surpassed your sexist outlook."

Sanji swallowed thickly. He'd never felt like a bigger fool in his life. There was so much regret just tugging on his legs and damning him down even faster. He was ashamed of who he was, how he'd been so blind. To think he once sided with such a wicked woman, and couldn't even acknowledge her malice while blinded by his own shitty agenda.

"Why.." He struggled out, the collar of his costume against his neck slightly choking him. "What do you get from the city?"

The super villian just sighed, rolling her shoulders and lowering him a few more inches out and above the water, enough his body might still curve 'accidentally' into the bridge on his way down, evidently having been asked this question on more than one occasion.

"Sometimes there are only answers you can find after everything has been destroyed." She said so sickeningly sweet in her sing song voice, almost proud of it. "Honestly, you have other things to be worried about."

And like it was the most effortless thing she could do, her finger oh so temptingly slid out from under his collar and the blond, stunned in a silence, began his decent towards the water. But still there was no reminiscence in his mind. It was just anger. Anger at the fact his last image was her cat walking away, fully intending to destroy everything he'd ever cherished, at failing those he'd sworn to protect, at betraying those who'd already fallen and tried to make him see the light.

He hadn't been the superhero he thought he was. His face on posters and memorabilia about the city didn't prove anything. Sanji was dying a traitor and he was dying weak. Knowing there literally was nothing more he could do, he closed his eyes and waited for the sensation everyone lives their whole life to feel – death.

Granted, he expected the feeling to be far more foreign to him, instead of feeling like someone only snatching his hand and literally almost popping it out of the socket, making him yell out in pain. Instantly his mind jumped to The Contessa, grabbing him again just to toy and play with him before she killed him, but his heart stopped when he glanced up and saw it simply wasn't true.

"Zoro..?!" Internally, at a better time when his life wasn't at risk, he might have actually cringed at the tinge of fear that drenched his voice.

Immediately his mind was jumbling around. How could it have been him? It didn't make sense, he'd mourned for him, he'd watched him die, there was no way that both of them could be alive and he highly doubted heaven was a place where he constantly was caught and dropped from bridges. But, it was true, Zoro hadn't died – he wasn't wearing his costume and was just in civilian wear, including some bandages that draped his chest up and around his neck where fatal wounds should have been.

But it wasn't the only thing that was easily noticed. He was struggling to keep him up, using both arms to support Sanji's weight. His powers, like Sanji's just moments ago, had been leeched from him and still hadn't returned. Otherwise he doubted he would have remained out of the action and hidden on the bridge.

The Marimo, as he affectionately called him during those longer after 'work' hour nights, just scowled at him and heaved him up more.

"Shut up idiot, what happened to not using real names?" He grunted. "You just gonna hang there or are you going to get up here?"

His words snapped Sanji back to the reality and since they hadn't already been flanked again by their enemy, he supposed he'd already been forgotten and dismissed as dead – mostly confirmed since the flood lights on the helicopters were searching the water furiously. So after a few moments of trying, and with Zoro's help, he flopped over the railing to the bridge.

Sanji hurried to his feet, brushing himself off, then quickly returned to the conversation.

"Bastard I don't see you in your shitty costume. How are you alive? What are you doing here? Was one death on television not enough for you?" Yeah, he was still bitter about that, sans the usual their life in danger situation that was a bit more common.

Zoro rolled his eyes. "I didn't have to come here after you, you know. Just come on, we have to get out of here. Neither of us can face her like this."

There was a time and a place to be touched Zoro came to save him and kidnap him to run away with him, Sanji was reminding himself, but he still wasn't cutting it. It was both their duties to fight until they couldn't stand anymore and protect the city. He'd just overcome his biggest weakness too – fighting women equally – and yet it still wasn't enough, but he still had to try.

"But she'll destroy the city, we can't leave her to do what she wants on her own. We have to try-"

"Sanji." Zoro hissed out, his hand squeezing onto his shoulder, it was always serious business when it was him addressing more casually, which he rarely did. "This isn't our fight. You know she isn't working alone, so we can't either. We gotta go."

Still, Sanji, like a stubborn kid in a store not ready to let go of the toy he had no chance of getting, clenched his jaw and stared up towards the rafters where he'd just been.

"But..."

Zoro just sighed, roughly lowering his hand and snatching the blond's, squeezing it tightly and already dragging him on their way. It probably wasn't any easier for him to do this either, especially since he'd been alive and even more fighting had been going on around him that he just couldn't participate in anymore. Which was a shame on it's own because he was one of the best of the best.

Sanji didn't protest however. He wasn't too blinded anymore, or rather wouldn't allow himself to be, and could see that without his powers compared to her he was nothing more than a fly in her trap she used to her advantage before quite literally draining his powers from him. Instead he looked back over at the back of the Marimo's head as he weaved him in through traffic, cursing about how she just had to have a long monologue that shortened the time they'd have to get away before police swarmed the area.

What on earth were they, as heros, supposed to even do next? That is, if Sanji's betrayal even allowed him to still be classified 'Hero'.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>  
><strong>This was something I wrote for a request on tumblr for a superhero au ~! Unfortunately I lost where that post is on my tumblr because I'm super unorganized so I cant recall who requested it specifically but thank you very much to whoever did! I hope that you enjoyed the fic, I know some people were curious if I would write a little more to it and I dunno just depends. But for the time being I'll keep it on complete. <strong>


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